Dear Mari

too much sugar can actually make things worse. i've heard mixed things about milk/cream (icecream). i personally tend to stay clear of dairy when i have throat trouble. mostly, if i am having mucous, i find it causes more of it. my choir teacher did in fact used to yell at us for even putting creamer in coffee - he said it "coated the throat." but some find it soothing.

honey is good, or honey lemon tea, but don't drink gallons of it and not constantly.

for gargling, what is usually recommended is warm (not hot hot hot) saline. it doesn't have to be accurate, just put maybe a 1/4 tsp salt in a cup of hot or nicely warm water and stir it up. then gargle. it's soothes and helps cleanse without otherwise interfering with your tissues.

what else. oh. if you are in pain pain, cloves might help. again, don't overdo. the oil is technically an irritant. but it ok as long as you take breaks and do not put 10 in your mouth at once. the oil is an anesthetic and it can reduce the pain considerably. what i've done is put 2 or three in my mouth and just let them sit between my cheeks and rear lower molars. occasionally i tap them between my teeth to encourage them to seep oil. if the pain is more in your breathing passages, get the flavor in your mouth, and then breathe gently through your mouth to get a little of the vapors in your airway. if your throat is too sore, you could find them irritating - in which case, don't insist - spit them out.

i hope you feel better soon.

~ waves ~